Friday, October 3, 2014

My New York Holiday : Chapter Four

At the end of the last chapter, the Vintage Shopping Tour girls had arrived (very late), so this chapter begins with me hanging out with some (very) jetlagged girls... and the effervescent Joy!

The first day of the shopping tour started with an art deco tour of midtown New York City. First stop was Grand Central Station. Oh. My. Lord.

Is it any wonder we were all looking up...

Here is something interesting I learned. Back in the 80s, this building was almost torn down. It was grimy and ugly and had completely lost its former glory. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was instrumental in getting the funds to have it restored to its former glory. See that dashed line across the blue ceiling? Follow that the the left and you will see a black rectangle. THAT is what the entire building looked like before the restoration. The cigarette smoke and dust and other yuck had accumulated that much that every surface was black. It is no wonder that this building was not appreciated for what it was. And I just love the way they left this one part un-restored so we can see it and appreciate the restoration process.

We went to quite a few buildings... but sadly I don't remember the names of them...

This is in the News Building - I remember that!

The Chrysler building is THE MOST AMAZING THING I HAVE EVER SEEN!

My day job is with a town planning consultancy, so I was interested to discover that the pyramid type stepping is actually a set-back restriction in the building code. And they are in place to provide light and breeze to street level.

We did go to The Waldorf.... which was beautiful. And for some reason we all needed to go to the bathroom.

I didn't even need to go - I just wanted to look!

The tour ended at The Rockefeller Centre, and we had a group photo with our tour guide, as you do. His name was Tony and he was an exceptionally knowledgeable man, and has literally written the book on Art Deco architecture in New York! Check out his website!

Thats him hiding back there with the hat on...

Joy and I made the day of the security guard at the Rockefeller Centre.

Kim had booked us all in the same elevator to the 'Top Of The Rock' (the viewing platform at the top of the building), and as we arrived at the head of the queue the ushers realised that we had one space and asked for volunteers to ride with us all. One very brave man put his hand up - his name was Fabian and he was french! Man did we give him a hard time - and then we had a photo with him at the top. I'm sure that photo went straight to Facebook!!!

The view from the top was spectacular! But it was also very hot in the sun, so it wasn't too long before we went back down to street level and made our way back to the hotel. Most of the tour girls were flagging badly due to lack of sleep. Some managed to go out for a few hours that night. Most didn't. Tracy made it out with Joy and I. We went to Blue Water Grill at Union Square. The food was amazing and the staff were incredible. On our way out I noticed a bank of three antique telephones, so we convinced one of the floor staff to take our photo.

From there we went to a tiki bar called Otto's Shrunken Head. It was hilarious! It was their punk night (I think) and it was full of punks! But still, we found people to talk to and we had some tiki drinks and had a general good time!

The lights over the bar were puffer fish!!!

Once again I've only managed to cover 1 day with my post! Too many photos I tell you!! The next post will be two days guaranteed. I tend to take less photos when I'm shopping!!!

So, do you have a love for Art Deco architecture, or is another era your favourite? Ever visited a bathroom when you didn't need to go, just so you could see what it was like? Have you been intimidated by a bunch of punks? Ever seen a more random light fitting than a puffer fish?

3 comments:

Loving your holiday posts! I adore Art Deco - all of it. Architecture, jewellery, clothing, adverts - you name it, I probably love it. I have visited two bathrooms just to see them. One was here in Vancouver, BC - they have the doors that are clear until you lock the door and then they instantly frost. The other was in NY! In Morimoto's (one of the Iron Chefs) restaurant in the Meat Packing District I believe. It had one of those crazy Japanese toilets that had a dozen or so different buttons, including one that air dries you...I'm not kidding!! I use to be a wanna-be punk/goth chick (I couldn't decide what I wanted to be more) so I love me some punks. That puffer fish light - amazing!Can't wait to hear more.Angela Wicentowich

I so much love to read about your trip… All the gorgeous things to see, the shoes you bought (details, please - I'm a shoe addict!), the new dress, and all the lovely outfits you're wearing on all the pictures. You look so splendid and I'm happy for you you had a brilliant time!

P.S.: Would have loved to see you ladies amongst all those punks at the tiki bar… What a sight!

Sew Retro Rose is my little corner of the web, where I talk to anyone who'll listen about my sewing adventures with vintage patterns. Sometimes I talk about other things too... but mostly sewing.

I rediscovered sewing in mid 2011 after not sewing for 15 years, and I didnt realise how much I missed it until I took it up again!

You can find me any day of the week (except Sunday) dressed in true vintage, or reproduction vintage complete with hair, makeup, false eyelashes and stilleto heels. Sewing my own reproduction vintage creations from patterns, wearing them, and getting compliments from complete stranges is so rewarding.